


Rear Sprockets

by TotalFarmage



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Greasers, Gen, Motorcycles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-30
Updated: 2019-08-30
Packaged: 2020-09-30 19:01:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20452022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TotalFarmage/pseuds/TotalFarmage
Summary: Annette's work is interrupted by an unexpected source asking for help. She's suspicious, sure, but the payout is more than worth the trouble.





	Rear Sprockets

“Hey.”

The voice from above snapped Annette’s attention away from her work, the tune she was humming catching in her throat. Of all the people to approach her when she was working on a new song...

Annette let out a grunt as she righted her posture, grease from the floor settling into the skin of her elbows and the material of her undershirt. The motorcycle at her side let out a clack as something inside of it shifted, and Annette sighed. So much for righting that piece. She turned to the person who accosted her and scowled.

“Felix.” Annette said simply, lips pursed and brow raised in a look that she hoped properly got across her annoyance at him. “Why do you always arrive when I’m singing? Don’t you have somebody else to make fun of that’s like, somewhere else?”

The two were alone in the dirty, run down garage owned by the group known as the ‘Blue Lions’. It was a small, dingy environment, stained with oil and sweat and covered in spare parts. And yet, it was home away from home for many of them there, and Annette often found that she’d much rather spend her free time here, busying away at a motorcycle or book on repair work than anything else. She had busy hands, and maintenance was a nice way to give them something to do.

Funnily enough, Annette wasn’t the best at driving much of anything. She found the noise and the speed and the everything distracting at best. And being distracted while cruising down the street at seventy miles an hour was something closer to a death wish than anything else. Still, she loved bikes and cars, and serving as the mechanic to the Blue Lions was more than fine enough for her. It allowed her to get her hands dirty, and deal with all the fun parts of the vehicles her friends drove around in.

“It sounded more like humming. And why would I make fun of anybody?” Felix scoffed, his trademark stare, scalding and sharp, boring into her. Annette had no idea if he was making a joke or not. His arms were crossed, a leather jacket draped over his shoulders. Supposedly, it had been his brother’s.

“You’re always making fun of Dimitri and Dedue.” Annette pointed out, crossing her arms and pouting. She settled her crossed arms onto the seat of the bike, planting her head into them and staring up. Felix stared down, face flat.

“Yes, well they deserve it.” He told her, cocking his brow. “What do you care?”

“I care because they’re my friends! And I thought they were your friends too!” Annette said, huffing a second after. “You just like to be mean to people for no reason.”

“I have my reasons.” Felix snorted, glancing away. However, his gaze returned a second later, staring down at her. “I’m not interested in talking about them though. I wanted your opinion on something.”

Annette narrowed her eyes. “_My _opinion? What could you possibly want _my_ opinion on? And _why_?”

“I think it should be obvious.” Felix scoffed. “I want you to take a look at my ride. I need a second pair of eyes, and I obviously only possess one.”

“Wait, _your_ bike?!” Annette hopped to her feet, excitement suddenly flooding her body. The creeper she was laying on slid away, bumping into the nearby workbench with a quiet ‘clack’.

Felix was one of the few members of the Blue Lions who didn’t frequently come to Annette for help on their bikes, and the only one to never visit her at all. He always insisted on doing his own work away from the others, and refused to come to her for regular repairs. That meant he usually sequestered himself off into his own little corner of the garage, and didn’t let anybody look at what he was doing. As a result, Annette never got to see what his work looked like, much less the inner workings of his ride. So an opportunity like this…

“Yes.” Felix glanced at her with a look in his eye that Annette wouldn’t be able to name, even if excitement wasn’t coursing through her veins. “I’ve replaced some of the rear sprockets, and figured I should get somebody to look it over now that I’m done.”

“Ooooooh my god.” Annette bounced on the balls of her feet, eyes shining. “That’s-” And then her brain caught up with her. Annette frowned, reining herself back and narrowing her eyes at Felix. “Wait a minute. You never want anybody to look at your bike. What is this? Where’s the catch?”

“Jeez.” Felix groaned, rolling his eyes. “There is no catch. I can’t ask for help with my bike without being questioned?”

“...well, it’s not like you ask for help with it. Like, ever.” Annette looked away, pouting. “You can’t blame me for being suspicious.”

“Your suspicions are unfounded, so I can.” Felix said, voice hard. “All I want is a second opinion. This is something that I’d rather not screw up, so somebody like you would be a good fit to double check it.”

“What do you mean ‘somebody like me’?” Annette asked, brow furrowed.

“Must you doubt my every word?” Felix asked, rolling his eyes. “If you’re this set on interrogating me about my intentions, I’ll just pass on any help you were willing to offer.” He shook his head and turned around.

“No! No no no!” Annette, scurried around the bike she’d been working on, scooting over to Felix’s side and latching onto his arm. “No! I want to help!”

“Let go of me.” He replied, though there was no motion to shake her off.

“Sorry! Sorry...” She let out a nervous laugh, quickly drawing her hands back to her chest. A light heat decorated her cheeks, embarrassment at her enthusiasm welling up in her chest. “I… I got a little too excited there.”

“It’s fine.” Felix said, glancing down at her. “Does this mean you’re going to help me out?” Annette opened her mouth to respond, and he continued. “_Without_ interrogating me the whole time?”

“...I said I was sorry.” She murmured, scuffing her boot on the ground. “I’ll be good.”

“Fine.” Felix replied, turning away. “Now come on, before somebody gets back and thinks I’m actually letting you work on my bike.”

And that’s all he said to her as he walked away, clearly expecting her to follow. Annette blinked at everything about the situation. Her mind told her that consorting with Felix like this probably wasn’t gonna lead to anything more than her getting made fun of some more. He was abrasive, and hard to be around sometimes. Her heart then reminded her that she was gonna get a chance to inspect Felix’s bike.

Annette followed.

Felix’s ride was sleek and streamlined, its body painted black and navy. The fluorescent light of the garage reflected off of the bike, giving it a sense of majesty. It seemed almost imposing as Annette approached, marveling. Even from where she stood, not even touching the motorcycle, she could tell how much love and care was put into its maintenance.

Felix stepped up, crouching next to the rear wheel, placing his hand on the tire. He then pointed into the rear workings with a finger, motioning for Annette to come closer with his head. She easily followed, scampering over and crouching next to him. He pointed out a few of the small parts in the wheel itself, then motioned to the actual sprocket.

“I’m adjusting the sprocket ratio,” He explained, “so that I’m putting a little more of the force on the back wheel. I wanted you to double check my work before I put the new chain on. This should be correct, however.”

“Wow...” Annette said quietly, awe in her voice. It was so well put together. Everything from the chassis to the suspension to the simple bells and whistles... Her hand reached out involuntarily, her fingertips gracing against the indicated sprocket with an almost reverent touch. This kind of beauty, such a solidly constructed motorcycle… And Annette knew that this was all done personally, everything about this bike was deliberate, done by Felix himself. Her fingers trailed over a few of the parts, branching away from the sprocket as she let herself become absorbed in the sights.

The parts were high quality and clearly well maintained… Nothing was out of place, or unnecessary. Everything was oiled and polished… It felt like Annette was looking at a snapshot of Felix’s true nature. Or maybe his soul, perhaps. Either way, she saw-

“Annette.” Felix’s voice cut through Annette’s thoughts, and her head whipped back towards him. “Pay attention, I hate repeating myself.”

“I-I’m sorry!” She yelped, hands jumping back to her chest. “I was just-”

“Save it.” Felix snorted, flapping a hand dismissively. “I don’t care. I know that you were admiring my bike, and it’s great that you can see my skills at work. However, I want you to check on the sprocket, then you can marvel as much as you want.”

“I can...” Annette couldn’t form words to match her excitement, staring at Felix with eyes wide as saucers. “Can… can I really?”

“I just said so, did I not?” Felix asked, rolling his eyes.

“Eeeeeee!” Annette let out an excited squeal, balling up her hands and shaking them in pure elation. Her body bounced involuntarily as she let her excitement flow through her, the feeling so strong it was sparking out of her fingertips. Annette’s eyes lit up, and she stared at Felix with a wide grin, a glow practically radiating off of her, made of pure joy. “Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you! I’m so happy I could hug you!”

“I’d prefer you not.” Felix shook his head.

“Okay, let me get my tools, and then I’ll look at your bike! Oh my god, this is gonna be so much fun!”

“Hey, wait,” Felix said, a scowl forming on his face. “I didn’t agree to-”

But it was too late. Annette was off, scurrying over to her corner of the garage so she could grab her work stuff. She knew what she was dedicating the rest of her afternoon to!


End file.
